Keeping vs Making One Wait
Hello all,
I am an assistant English teacher in Japan at the moment, and one of my fellow teachers asked me if there was a difference between the phrases:
"Sorry for keeping you waiting" and
"Sorry for making you waiting".
I told her that the first was acceptable, but the second was not (it would have to be "Sorry for making you wait"). But I couldn't give her any reason why other than the fact that it sounded unnatural. Does anyone have any idea if 'keeping' and 'making' play different grammatical roles, or is the only difference that one just feels wrong?
Any insight would be most appreciated!
Top answer
In your examples 'keep' and 'make' are catenative verbs. That is, they can be combined with another verb ('wait' in these examples). Each catenative verb has its own properties, properties specific to that verb.
- In your examples 'keep' and 'make' are catenative verbs.
- That is, they can be combined with another verb ('wait' in these examples).
- Each catenative verb has its own properties, properties specific to that verb.
- 'keep' is combined with the -ing form or the -en form of a verb.
- 'make' is combined with the plain form of a verb.
Get the Weekly English Kit 📬
New words, one handy idiom, and a 2-minute quiz — delivered to your inbox to keep your streak alive.
In your examples 'keep' and 'make' are catenative verbs. That is, they can be combined with another verb ('wait' in these examples).
Each catenative verb has its own properties, properties specific to that verb.
'keep' is combined with the -ing form or the -en form of a verb.
'make' is combined with the plain form of a verb.
keep you guessing / keep us waiting / keep
0
Related Questions